Shaykh, I work in a hospital and there are Muslim patients here. Today the administration had food cooked for the patients for an early Thanksgiving celebration. Being that Thanksgiving is really next week and not today, can the Muslims eat from this food?

The Shaykh answered:

No. It is not allowed for the Muslims to eat from this food since it has been cooked for the reason of celebrating Thanksgiving. The major scholars like Shaykh Saalih and others have fataawa regarding the prohibition of eating from the food that has been prepared for the celebration of the holidays of the kuffaar. If you eat from that food, this means you have joined with them in the celebration of the holiday.

Abu Yusuf then asked the Shaykh (may Allah preserve him):

What about the leftover food? For example, can they eat from that food tomorrow, after the celebration is over?

The Shaykh (may Allah preserve him) stated:

They are not allowed to eat the leftovers, whether it’s a day before or a day after the celebration. As long as that food has been prepared for the celebration of the holidays, it’s not allowed to eat it.